People power wins day

ONE of Dundee’s bestloved lollipop ladies has returned to her post after people power proved victorious.

Freda Doig has operated a crossing outside Forthill Primary School for two decades.

After a member of the public reported concerns about the l ollipop l ady helping children cross Forthill Road as well as Balgillo Road, her employers Tayside Contracts moved Freda from her long-standing position to a new location close to Dores Drive.

Bewildered by the decision, parent Angela Lyall launched a petition to urge the local authority contracting organisation to think again.

After more t han 450 parents pledged t heir support for Angela’s petition i n l ess t han t wo days, Tayside Contracts agreed that Freda would return to her original station on Monday.

Angela said: “Everyone knows Freda and the key thing is that Freda knows everyone as well.

“She knows the children’s names, their behaviours and who needs some extra attention when crossing the road.”

A spokesman for Tayside Contracts said the decision to move Freda came down to safety.

“The position of Tayside Contracts is that if an incident were to happen at a non-established crossing point it would be difficult to defend,” he said.

“Freda got in touch and once we talked everything through and explained this, she understood.”